Eating overcooked starchy food is linked to cancer, agency warns

Consumers are being warned about the dangers of overcooking toast, potatoes, and other starchy food because acrylamide, a chemical that is produced during cooking, has been linked to cancer.

The dangers of high levels of acrylamide have been recognised for about a decade, but in 2015 the European Food Safety Authority published a risk assessment saying that high levels of acrylamide in food potentially increased the risk of developing all types of cancer in all age groups.1